Upright Quill Wings - The Fly Tier's Benchside Reference - page 244
As explained in the preceding section, the tyer has options at various stages of dressing upright quill wings. The sequence that follows is primarily intended to provide a general picture of dressing quill wings by indicating where in the process those options apply. In addition, some techniques for improving the durability of quill wings are presented.
The photo at the end of the sequence illustrates an unusual wing style devised by René Harrop in which trimmed biots are dressed using the procedure shown in this method.
Step 1. Mount the tying thread and create a thread foundation for the wing as described in Method #1: Mounting and Posting Upright Wings, Step 1a, p. 242. (If the wing is to be reverse-mounted, consult Step 2a, p. 242.)
Cut a matching pair of quill segments as explained in “Preparing Quill Wings,” p. 243. With the left fingers, pinch the quill segments, convex sides together, just behind the mounting point. (For an undivided wing, pinch the quill segments with the concave sides together.) Once the quills are pinched together, align the tips of the wings by sliding the fingertips against one another to push or pull the quill segments into alignment. Longer segments of quill can be aligned using the approach shown in Method #40: Paired Quill Downwings, Step 1, p. 287.
Notice that the quill segment is not symmetrical, but rather tapers to a point at one edge—on the right as shown in the photo below. This point is at the front of the wing.
Step 2. Hold the wings atop the hook as shown, with the front of the wings against the shank and the tips of the wing out the beyond the hook eye. (For reverse-mounted wings, hold the quills in the opposite orientation, with the back edge of the wing against the shank and the butts projecting over the hook eye.)
Affix the wings to the shank using any of the following mounting techniques: Method #9: The Pinch Wrap, p. 30; Method #10: The Bobbin Loop, p. 31; or Method #11: The Langley Loop, p. 32. After the initial mounting wrap is made, take one or two additional tight turns of thread at the mounting point to further secure the material.
Then take 4 or 5 tight, adjacent wraps of thread toward the hook bend (or toward the hook eye if the wing is reverse mounted), binding down the wing butts.
Step 3. Clip the quill butts, using an angle cut or other technique designed to create a smooth underbody when mated with the butts of the tailing material.
Post the wing to the vertical position using one of the techniques shown in Method #1: Mounting and Posting Upright Wings, p. 241.
Bind down the clipped butts tightly with thread.
Step 4. Quill wings can be reinforced in three ways. The most common is to apply a drop of flexible cement to the base of the wings—either between the two wings or at the outside of each wing base. Flexible cement is preferable to rigid adhesives such as CA glue or head cement, since a certain pliancy and resilience in the wing helps reduce air resistance during casting.
Second, with a needle or toothpick, apply a thin line of gel-type CA glue along the tip edges of the wing, as shown here. This adhesive essentially glues the quill barbs together at the tips to prevent splitting. It must, however, be applied sparingly and carefully, and not be allowed to bleed down into the main portion of the wing.
Finally, some tyers prefer to spray a light coating of workable fixative on the wing material. The wings can be coated before they are mounted or after they are mounted provided, of course, that no other materials have yet been affixed to the shank. Or whole feathers can be sprayed before the quill segments are cut. Spray fixative, however, has its drawbacks. The adhesive stiffens the wings, adding to air resistance in casting which may cause light tippets to twist. Where a wing made of untreated quill can sometimes be preened back to shape if it splits, a quill treated with workable fixative cannot; the adhesive mats the tiny barbules that cause the barb fibers to mate and adhere.
Step 5. Tyer René Harrop dresses upright wings from turkey biots trimmed to shape, as shown here. The technique for mounting and posting these wings is identical to the one shown in the preceding demonstration, except that they need not be reinforced with adhesive. Biots that lack a natural curvature may require a few crisscross wraps between the wings to separate them.
Biots are rather narrow, and thus this style is best suited to smaller hooks; the #16 shown here is about the largest practical size.
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